BOISE, Idaho — After a full day spent in court on Wednesday, a verdict was reached in the trial of Samson Allen, the Meridian man arrested and charged with resisting and obstructing officers during a tense situation in a Meridian Neighborhood last summer.
After hours of eyewitness and expert testimony, a jury of 6 peers found Samson Allen guilty of resisting arrest and obstructing an investigation. Allen was sentenced to unsupervised probation.
RELATED: Parents of a Meridian man raise concerns over use of force in son's arrest
Idaho News 6's Allie Triepke was in the Ada County Courthouse as several witnesses, including Allen and the arresting officer, took the stand.
The former Meridian police officer, Bradley Chambers, became the center of a use-of-force investigation after he pinned Allen to the ground while investigating a motor-vehicle crash.
“I’m just disappointed that this is the standard for our police and our community,” said Samson Allen.
Allen says this experience and trial have hurt his view of local law enforcement, “I never expected to be put in this kind of situation myself.”
Video of that day, including body-cam footage, was shown to the jury in court.
Officer Chambers testified that he felt what he did was right after doing everything possible to de-escalate the situation.
The defense also called Meridian Police Sergeants Brandon Fiscus and Justin Dance, who conducted the use of force investigation, to the stand. They claim that Officer Chambers “could have been better” at de-escalating the tense situation, but they ultimately didn’t find that he violated policy.
Samson Allen testified that he didn’t understand what Officer Chambers was asking him to do moments before he was detained. However, that wasn't enough to convince the jury.
On the steps of the courthouse, Allen shared with Idaho News 6 a social media post by the Meridian Chief of Police, Tracy Basterrechea, that was made following the killing of George Floyd. Allen feels there were similarities in restraint techniques in his and Floyd’s arrest.
“There’s no police training I have ever been involved in over my 24 years in law enforcement where it has ever been taught to kneel on somebody’s neck; in fact it is stressed not to do this... Treating every person with whom we come into contact with dignity and respect is the bedrock of our profession; those who fail to do so need to be held accountable,” read Samson Allen from the Facebook post.
Samson Allen’s family tells Idaho News 6 they’re disappointed with the verdict.
